Rochelle Riley writes in her Detroit Free Press column that while last week's Republican presidential debate started out like a Saturday Night Live comedy sketch, moderators did Americans a favor by refocusing attention on the economy instead of sex.

It took the moderators nearly a half hour to get to what the media -- but not the American people -- wanted to know.

One asked businessman Herman Cain, amid boos, whether America would want to hire someone whose character has been questioned, and Cain nailed his response, to cheers.

"The American people deserve better than someone being tried in the court of public opinion based on unfounded accusations," he said.